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AdvertisementMIDDLE-CLASS Venezuelans are lining up to leave the country amid fears that President Hugo Chavez is laying the ground for a dictatorship.

Opponents of his “20th century socialism” are so desperate to escape that they have resorted to learning new languages and tracking down long-lost European relatives in the hope of securing a visa.

At the US embassy, visa inquiries have risen in recent weeks from 400 to about 800 a day. “There are spikes toward Christmas or another major holiday, but this increase doesn’t fall into that category,” embassy spokesman Brian Penn said.

The British embassy has seen a similar increase in numbers. “It has been increasing for some time, but what’s different now is the tone of desperation,” a British spokesman said.

A website for would-be emigrants — mequieroir.com (I want to leave.com) — reports that since Mr Chavez’s December 3 election win, and his announcement last month that he would nationalise the telecommunications and electricity industries, its daily visits have soared from 20,000 to 60,000.

“You’re getting more families, who are worried about their children’s futures,” said Esther Bermudez, who runs the site.

At the Italian Culture Institute, registration for Italian language classes is up 20 per cent year on year. Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans have Spanish, Italian or Portuguese relatives who emigrated there after World War II.

Ernestina Hidalgo, 40, whose husband is a Spanish citizen, said she was hoping their two teenage children would also be granted Spanish citizenship. An “enabling law”, passed by the National Assembly 10 days ago, granting Mr Chavez 18 months of rule by decree, was the final straw, she said.

“Chavez doesn’t accept political dissidence. Why do they need an enabling law if they have an absolute majority in the National Assembly?”

Outside the Spanish consulate, Dayana Ramirez, 20, whose paternal grandmother is Spanish, queued with her boyfriend Jose Antonio Barreiro, 24, as he waited to pick up his passport. She wants to acquire Spanish citizenship and the couple hope to emigrate to Galicia in north-western Spain.

“Older people leave because they are concerned about the future of their families,” said Mr Barreiro, a graphic designer, “and younger people like us leave because there is no future.”

As the world’s fifth largest oil exporter, Venezuela has benefited from record oil prices, boosting the scope for Mr Chavez’s social spending.